Today’s guest post comes to us from Rich Birch for ChurchPlants.com.
Questions have a curious function in the life of a leader. A good question can often propel us forward more than a great answer. Our roles in leading our churches require us to not only work in our ministry but to also take a step back and work on our ministry. That means that from time to time we need to step back and ask questions that we don’t normally ask about our ministry.
I know this can be hard to do during the weekly crunch of getting our services organized, caring for our community, and completing all the various tasks that we are called to do in our churches. To help you start conversations with your leadership team around the development of your church, I’ve put together this list of 10 questions that I hope will help guide you to a deeper conversation, even if they’re just a jump-off point to new questions that might stir in you.
- Would you attend your church if you weren’t a paid staff member? This is a convicting question for me. I can say there are weekends here and there that, if I’m honest, I’m not sure I’d attend church if I wasn’t being paid. Those days are usually in the middle of the summer when it’s super nice out, and I look out and think, “Wow, it would be great to go to the beach today.” However, over the long arc of my ministry I’ve been proud to serve in the churches that I have. I feel bad for people who serve in churches that they’re not excited to be a part of.
- How is your church systematically increasing people’s generosity? Finding ways to encourage your people to give generously to the mission is an important function of senior leadership in every church. In fact, in some circles it would be considered a normal part of your role to spend between 20-30 percent of your week thinking through how you’re encouraging people to be good stewards of what God has given them. The reality is that your ministry will function more effectively when your people’s generosity is increasing.
- What is it you do that only you can do? You’re probably doing too much. In fact, there’s probably a large portion of your to-do list this week that you simply should not be working on. You need to delegate. Stop trying to do everything. Pick your best piece and run with that. Hand everything else off, delegate or just let stuff fall off the plate. As you find what you’re called to do, improve at that, and exercise those gifts, you’d be amazed to what God will do in your church.
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Your partner in ministry,
Nelson
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